voidbournefandomcom-20200215-history
Terra-class dreadnought
The Terra-class dreadnoughts, referred to as Terra-class heavy battleships in the Consortium (which does not use the term dreadnought to describe any warship), were and are the most powerful warships in the Terran Alliance Navy. Most would be extensively rebuilt with newer, heavier weapons, heavier armour, and be modernized to carry massive boring lasers in the post-Djangor era. Design The Terra-class dreadnoughts were born out of a desire to match existing Razorbird warships, seen as generally superior in every regard to existing Alliance warships, on a 1-to-1 basis. Building upon the dependable Mars-class battleship design and enlarging it to take new 35cm boring lasers took several years as the architects struggled to bring the amount of armament needed to bear on such a massive hull. The result of their labour, however, proved well worth the sweat and tears: the Terra class proved to be the largest and most advanced warships in Terran history, so large in fact that only the Sol-based shipyards of Saturn were capable of building and refitting them. Though on the slower side in keeping with Alliance doctrine for capital ships, they were impressively protected as well, with over a metre of armour in places in addition to the redoubtable shielding the Alliance perfected. The hullform consisted of two double wedge-shaped hulls joined together, allowing for the maximum amount of firepower to be brought to bear on a target in front of the ship and all of the heavy lasers to be brought to bear on the broadside. The heavy 35cm boring lasers were located at the junction of the two hulls, allowing them to have maximum protection. Armament The Terra-class dreadnoughts featured an impressive armament: two 35cm boring lasers specially designed for the class, capable of punching through all but the heaviest protection and shielding, mated to an impressive array of the Alliance's dependable 28cm laser cannons. A further massive battery of 15cm laser cannons for anti-ship work and 10.5cm 'rapid response' cannons for breaking up bomber attacks as well as destroyer torpedo runs was provided, studded throughout the hull in well-protected weapons emplacements. The Terra ''class also carried a battery of torpedoes: two Ragnarök torpedo launchers, each firing a single massive armoured torpedo, as well as eight multiple-launch 'swarm' torpedo launchers for short range combat. There were also a large number of 5cm blaster banks and the Alliance ubiquitous 'Aegis' laser defense for point-defense and antistarfighter work. Post-Modernization After the Battle of Djangor proved the effectiveness of heavy guns and boring lasers over the Alliance fleet's existing doctrines of massed small-calibre cannons with a high fire rate, many ships were modernized to meet the new standards in order to remain relevant in the Alliance fleet. This included the ''Terra-class dreadnoughts, which were almost completely rebuilt to deal with new doctrine and new tactics. Their armament as refurbished was scaled to the following: * 2x 51cm PC-1 boring lasers * 32x 38cm PC-5200 laser cannons in twin turrets * 51x 20.3cm laser cannons in triple turrets * 42x 15cm laser cannons in single or twin turrets The 35cm boring lasers were replaced with larger, fixed 51cm spinal mounts, while the large number of 28cm laser cannons was replaced with a smaller yet considerably more powerful number of 38cm laser cannons. About half of the 15cm cannons were also replaced with 20.3cm lasers originally destined for the surplus of Hyperion-, Phobos-, and Atlas-class heavy cruisers that had been abruptly cancelled while under construction by the war's end. The armour was also removed from most of the starships and replaced with a newer, more effective type of armour plating at the same thickness, making them considerably more durable- Alliance Triumphant, flagship of the Second Fleet, was notable for not receiving this upgrade (later leading to severe damage and being written off). History Early Years & The Razorbird Crusades The Alliance-Imperial War (Eastern Rim conflict) Third War in Heaven Final Years and Fates Ships in class * Star of Terra (BB-1) - Sol[[Sol-class dreadnought| (Modified Terra)-class]] * Alliance Triumphant (BB-733) * Inextinguishable (BB-777) * Inexorable (BB-898) * Majestic (BB-899) * Indomitable (BB-905) * Audacious (BB-1000) * Temerity (BB-1221) Category:Terran Alliance Category:Alliance Starships Category:Starships Category:Starship classes Category:Star Dreadnoughts Category:Battleships